Boston Sports Then and Now

Stars #1 and #2 from game 3′s 2-0 victory celebrate the win together

A little home cooking can go a long way in the NHL. The Bruins were in Boston for game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals for game 3, and they were able to feed off of their own energetic crowd en route to a 2-0 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks. There are plenty of moments in game 3 to focus on, but to me this game was a perfect example of the B’s buying into Claude Julien’s system, and doing what is necessary to win a hockey game.

Tuukka Rask may have earned his third shutout of the postseason tonight, but he did so with a lesser workload than he had in the previous two games. He only faced 28 shots in game 3 as the team in front of him absolutely shutdown the Hawks. The B’s blocked a whopping 17 shots in last night’s effort compared to Chicago’s 7.

Dennis Seidenberg earned himself the coveted army jacket following his effort in the tilt. Seides is easily one of the most underrated players on the Bruins, and in the NHL. It was nice to see his teammates award him the jacket because they truly understand the dedication he has to the team. He didn’t add a goal or an assist on the score sheet, but he did lead the team in blocked shots with 6, and hits with 4. He also broke up countless Chicago scoring chances, and was relentless in his pursuit of the puck during the Bruins’ penalty kill.

Chris Kelly also had a hell of a game last night, and has really turned it on during the finals. He may not have had a stellar regular season, but Kelly is a major part of this team. He does countless things that do not show up on the scoreboard, which is too bad because it seems as if he is constantly criticized for not scoring. Scoring has never been a major part of Kelly’s career despite his incredible breakout offensive season last year. Kelly is incredible in the faceoff dot, a tenacious back-checker, and a leader. He was all over his teammates during their weak start in game 2, and it was awesome to see him score the goal that got the Bruins rolling. He had an assist last night, a +1, and won 76% of his face-offs.

Speaking of face-offs… Patrice Bergeron was an absolute animal in the dot last night. He won 24 out of 28 draws, which is good for 86%, and also added his second powerplay goal of the series from a nice Jaromir Jagr feed. He led the team in shots during the game with 7 as well.

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Boston Bruins forward #20 Daniel Paille celebrates his game two overtime winner

Thankfully everyone watching game two of the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals didn’t have to stay up until 1am. Instead the Boston Bruins were able to win the game in overtime, sending the series back to Boston tied at one. There is plenty of praise to go around in this recap; not because the B’s won this game, but because they did so after being absolutely dominated during the first half of regulation.

There is really no way to say it without putting it bluntly. The Bruins were completely dominated in the first period of game two, and had it not been for the outstanding play of Tuukka Rask, they would be down in the finals 2-0. Rask would finish the game without letting in another goal despite a goal review that will remain in infamy for Chicago fans. The Hawks believed they scored, but the referee blew the whistle dead and the play was nullified. Aside from these blemishes though, Rask was flawless.

Rask stopped 18 of 19 shots in the first period of game 2 while the guys in front of him only managed 4 shots on goal themselves. The Chicago Blackhawks absolutely blitzed the Bruins in the opening periods of last night’s game, but as it went on Boston was able to slowly crawl their way back into the game.

Chris Kelly scored Boston’s first goal of the night following an excellent display of fore-checking from the newly assembled third line. I say newly assembled because Clade Julien dismantled and reassembled his bottom six following the Patrick Sharp goal. Julien took Kaspars Daugavins and Rich Peverley off of the third line, and placed them on the fourth line with Shawn Thornton. I have been a big fan of Peverley over the last two seasons, but he looks completely lost, and if you read my recap of game one you know exactly how I feel about Daugavins.

Kelly and Daniel Paille were moved up onto the third line with Seguin, and the team saw immediate results. This line was dominate tonight, and I think this was Kelly’s best game all season. He has received some criticism for not meeting the lefty expectations his breakout season prior established for him. Despite being snake bitten in the scoring department; Kelly does all of the little things right that a team can appreciate, and fans can miss completely. He kills penalties, blocks shots, and leads by example on and off the ice. He was also a +2 on the night.

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The Chicago Blakchawks took game one, and it took three extra overtimes to do it

As I sit here writing this recap, you can probably assume that I exhausted after watching game one, and I would say that you were correct. In what was possibly one of the best Stanley Cup finals games ever (and longest), The Blackhawks took a one game lead over the Boston Bruins with a heartbreaking double deflection in triple overtime.

The game started out pretty well for the B’s; Lucic got the Bruins on the board midway through the first period created by an excellent play by David Krejci behind the net. Krejci shook off a Hjalmarsson check and fed Nathan Horton, who ten threaded it to Lucic, who then beat a sprawling Corey Crawford.

The second period started out favorably for the Bruins too. Milan Lucic scored again, this time from an excellent Krejci feed. Crawford got a piece of the shot, but it wasn’t enough. The Bruins were sitting pretty with a 2 goal lead with plenty of the second period to play. The Hawks’ Brandon Saad got his team on the board minutes later with his first of the postseason following a great pass from Marian Hossa. The puck beat Rask clean over glove side, and was also the result of a defensive breakdown from the Bruins.

The third period started out well enough for the B’s, they got a powerplay from a Michael Frolik trip on Zdeno Chara. The Blackhawks came into the series with the best penalty kill percentage in the NHL, so you can imagine my surprise when the Bruins capitalized on the man advantage taking a 3-1 lead.

Things were looking pretty swell for Boston following the surprising powerplay goal, and it seemed like they were content to choke the life out of the Hawks the rest of the way through. Unfortunately for the Bruins, the Hawks weren’t going to roll over and die. They fought the B’s hard all throughout the rest of the period, and were fortunate enough to get the game tied. Their second goal was a result of a Torey Krug (his worst game yet) turnover, which led to a counterattack that saw Dave Bolland pot his first of the playoffs. Andrew Shaw made quite the pass to set him up leaving Tuukka helpless.

Chicago’s third goal was a lucky bounce. Hawks’ defenseman Johnny Oduya fired a shot from the point that went off Andrew Ference’s skates and in. It was tough to see the Bruins blow a two goal lead like they did, but this game wasn’t over, not by a long shot.

This game would take three more overtimes to get it done. The First overtime, I thought, favored Boston. They controlled the pace of the game, and were even lucky enough to get the dreaded Too Many Men on the Ice penalty called on their opponents. The powerplay looked good, but they did not score. The Bruins also lost Nathan Horton during the powerplay as it seems like he aggravated an injury that he has been playing with.  Horton did not return.

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The Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks are set to play each other in 2013 Stanley Cup Final.

The Boston Bruins are back in the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time in three seasons. They are currently preparing to face an excellent Chicago Blackhawks team that has fought their way to their second finals appearance in four seasons. Both of these teams had to overcome significant adversity to get where they are right now. The Bruins were famously down by three goals in game 7 against Toronto before mounting one of the biggest playoff comebacks in NHL history. The Hawks were down by three games against the rival Detroit Red Wings before storming back to take the series.

The point here is that both of these teams have had to come together as a team to overcome the obstacles in their way to get back to the Finals. This Chicago team will not roll over like the Penguins and Rangers did. This team is going to battle Boston over every single inch of ice in what is sure to be the most excited Cup Finals in years.

Forwards:

The Bruins have gotten some ridiculously excellent play from their top line. Milan Lucic, David Krejci, and Nathan Horton are all playing at the top of their game, and they are a big reason why the B’s are where they are right now. Krejci leads all NHL scorers in the postseason with 9 goals, 12 assists, and a +14 in 16 games. Nathan Horton has been elite so far this postseason, which is big for a guy who many believed to be gone at the end of the season. Now it seems like Horty will become a big priority for the Bruins after Tuukka Rask is signed. He has 7 goals, 10 assists, and a +21 in 16 games. Lucic may not be dominating the score sheet, but he is making a significant impact on the ice. He has a team leading 68 hits, 3 goals, 10 assists, and a +13 in 16 games.

The Patrice Bergeron has also gotten it going since the end of the Toronto series. Bergeron leads all NHL forward in the postseason with a .61 face-off percentage. He has also scored some incredibly clutch goals for Boston as seen in game 7 against the Leafs. He also scored a massive goal against the Penguins in double overtime of game 3. Bergy has 5 goals, 6 assists, and a +4 in 16 games. Brad Marchand has been solid this postseason, and it appears as if he has finally found that fine line between pest and contributor. He has 4 goals, 9 assists, and a +7. Jaromir Jagr was also big for the Bruins against the Pens as 3 of his 7 assists came in that series. He has no goals (not for a lack of trying), 7 assists, and a +1.

Losing Gregory Campbell will certainly hurt the Bruins, but it also provides an excellent opportunity for someone else to step up. Guys like Rich Peverley, Chris Kelly, and Tyler Seguin have all had massively disappointing postseasons. Hopefully one of them can step up and fill in the void Soupy has left.

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Your 2013 Eastern Conference Champion Boston Bruins

What a strange year it has been for the NHL and our beloved Boston Bruins. This season has been quite a roller coaster ride, especially so in the regular season. We saw flashes of brilliance, and a significant amount of mediocrity too. There was always that thought of the Bruins hitting the “second gear” to really turn their game up. We didn’t get to see much of it in the regular, albeit shortened season, but we now have the black and gold firing on all cylinders on their way to their second Cup Finals appearance in 3 years.

It was a very tight affair in game 4. Both teams obviously wanted it, but it seems as if neither goaltender, whether it be Rask or Vokoun, was giving up a goal tonight.

Last night was a night of team play highlighted by excellent personal performances. Tuukka Rask will get his due later in this article, but first I would like to talk about Adam McQuaid. McQuaid was a bit of a question mark heading into the regular season due to the extremely dangerous blood clot problem he had over the offseason. The recovery time for the surgery he had to repair it left the B’s will a question mark as to whether or not he would be able to go.

Fortunately for the Bruins, McQuaid would join the team at the start of the season. His regular season weren’t anything to go crazy over (1 goal, 3 assists, and an even rating), but he was a consistently physical presence in the lineup. After all, that is McQuaid’s role on this Boston team. He provides solid minutes, and lays on the hurt in a variety of ways when need be. You can imagine my excitement when Quaider’s shot grazed Jarome Iginla’s stick and beat Vokoun glove side high. What a moment it must have been for a guy like McQuaid, and what he has gone through over the past year. Good for him, he deserves the goal which is also a further testament to his nomination for Bill Masterton Award for perseverance.

McQuaid now has 2 goals, an assist, and a +8 in all 16 games of Boston’s playoff run. He may not be a big contributor on the score sheet, but Quaider has subtlety stepped up his game for the playoffs.

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You might have missed this part when watching Syrio Forel teach Arya Stark how to “dance”.

The First Sword of Bravos could teach a thing or two to a slow and much maligned Jarome Iginla. He never got his skating legs going, and one has to wonder if chasing a cat throughout King’s Landing might have helped the aging winger like it did for Arya.

The Boston Bruins have eliminated the Pittsburgh Penguins for their second trip to the Stanley Cup Finals in three years. Tune in tomorrow morning for my recap of game 4, and my preview of the Stanley Cup Finals (sounds great to say) once the Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings series is decided later in the week.

I might be a little to proud of this meme I made…

You can follow me on Twitter here: @Mattjacob64